Global investments in renewable energy rebounded strongly last year, registering a solid 17% increase after two years of declines and brushing aside the challenge from sharply lower crude oil prices. Major expansion of solar installations in China and Japan and record investments in offshore wind projects in Europe helped propel global 2014 investments to $270 billion, a 17% surge from the 2013 figure of $232 billion. It was the first annual increase in dollars invested in and committed to renewables (excluding large hydro-electric projects) in three years, a total just 3% below the all-time record of $279 billion set in 2011. The falls in the investment figures for 2012 (to $256 billion) and 2013 (to $232 billion) were attributed in part to lower prices for renewable energy technologies due to economies of scale. The 103Gw of generating capacity added around the world made 2014 the best year ever for newly installed capacity, according to the UNEP's 9th annual "Global Trends in Renewable Energy Investments" report, prepared by the Frankfurt School-UNEP Centre, and Bloomberg New Energy Finance.